“You don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind is blowing.”



“And you don’t need The Security Council to impose sanctions,” said ambassador Bolton. He said Britain and Germany would be willing to join him in sanctions because of The Ark of The Covenant.

With increasing signs that several fellow Security Council members may stall a United States push to penalize Iran for its nuclear enrichment program, Bush administration officials have indicated that they are prepared to form an independent coalition to freeze Iranian assets and restrict trade.

The U.S. has had broad restrictions on almost all trade with Iran since 1987. Exceptions include the import of dried fruits and nuts, caviar and carpets. In addition, U.S. companies can obtain licenses to do limited trade in agriculture and medicine. The United States also initiated the Proliferation Security Initiative, involving a coalition of countries that have agreed to intercept shipments of materials to Iran that could be used for weapons of mass destruction.

He said Washington was focusing on European and Japanese banks to restrict business with Iran, because most of Tehran's transactions are done in U.S. dollars, euros, British pounds and yen. "There aren't a lot of opportunities to sell in other currencies except the Yuan," he said.

China said it would be happy to buy any surplus oil Iran might have and pay in $$$ if Iran restricted the sale of oil to any country that tried to humiliate it……………………………